Archive for October, 2016

“Sellotape” is the first single taken from the second up and coming album from Irish artist Robotnik (Chris Morrin).

Plain and simple, the song was inspired by a mental breakdown in Morrin’s life. Morrin has decided to use the forthcoming album as a promotional tool to SHINE LIGHT ON DEPRESSION, MENTAL HEALTH, AWARENESS and THE PSYCHOLOGICAL PRESSURES OF A GLOBAL NEOLIBERAL IDEOLOGY.

Written & recorded over the course of winter 2011, in a basement flat in Dublin, the song is about holding onto psychological control of the inner & outer self. It’s a snapshot of tougher times in Morrin’s personal life. It was mixed in 2012 in the infamous Funkhaus Studios, Berlin. Not being able to even face the idea of playing music publically again, Morrin ended up going on a deep reflective journey for the last 4 years in Berlin. It’s taken all this time for Morrin to even consider releasing such a harrowing reminder of his past.

His debut album PLEASANT SQUARE was released in 2008, which was greatly received by the UK & Irish press and public.

Albums Reviews of Debut album ‘Pleasant Square’

“Breezy Melodies, assertive diction and scratchy acoustic guitar sounds never ever sounded as at home with trebly beats and primitive Jean Michelle Jarre synth sounds as they do on this hometown classic.” – HOTPRESS 4/5

“remarkable debut, which straddles Eighties synth-pop and thoroughly modern laptop lo-fi, he displays ambition and originality in spades. This is among the very best records of the year” – ALTERNATIVE ULSTER 8/10

A reproduction of the Song “Ben”, written by Don Black and made famous by Michael Jackson has been re-released by Kiera Dignam in Memory of Batman Ben.
Ben Farrell, the five-year-old boy who captured the public’s heart – known as Batman Ben because of his love for the super hero – died from a rare form of cancer in August this year. Now in an effort to help children in a similar position, the charity single “Ben” is set to be released On Friday October 28.

The single will be sold for €5 on CD and €1.29 on iTunes, with all proceeds going to two charities that supported Ben and his family: The Gavin Glynn Foundation and Aoibheann’s Pink Tie.
Touched by Ben’s story, Stephen Browne, a music promoter from Ben’s hometown in Finglas and manager of recently reformed band the Brilliant Trees came up with the idea for the single. Stephen worked with numerous individuals and organisations to help bring it to life. The royalty fees were kindly waived by song writer Don Black, Kiera Dignam, daughter of Aslan’s Christy Dignam, was happy to lend her amazing voice to the cause, artwork was provided free of charge by Printbroker.ie and the cost of the recording and production was provided through a grant from eBay Ireland’s Global Impact Team.

Stephen Explains: “Like most people hearing the heart-breaking story of Ben, I just wanted to help. When the idea for the song came to me I decided to chance my arm and contact Don Black not really expecting a reply. To my surprise, I received a reply within an hour from Don not only offering his support but he had also made contact with Sony to get the process moving. What a kind man.”

Ben’s mother Val Farrell hopes the proceeds will help towards finding a cure one day for this awful disease. Filled with emotion, she explains how Ben loved this song: “When Kiera told us she had been working on possibly releasing a single for Ben, I thought how lovely, what a great idea – but when she told me the song was ‘Ben’ by Michael Jackson I cried. Through Ben we hope to find the strength to continue. We hope to continue to be inspired to live as fully as he did and we hope to continue to allow Bens smile to change the world for the better…. we hope to make him proud.”
The award-winning songwriter Don Black, who had originally offered this popular song first to Donny Osmond before Michael Jackson turned it into a smash hit, says he is thrilled with this new recording of the Oscar-nominated single. “I do love this version of the song, it’s a terrific vocal,” he says. I’m so upset to hear this sad news, this is a truly heart-breaking story and I send my condolences to all the family.”

The legendary Christy Dignam of Aslan fame was by Kiera’s side at the studio to help and offer his guidance and the track was produced and recoded by Stuart Gray, a multitalented musician who has worked with Hozier, Ryan Sheridan and Brian Kennedy, to name a few.
Kiera hopes the song will help raise much needed money for this worthy cause. She says: “Ben by Michael Jackson seemed to be the perfect song and I then found out Ben had it on his iPad and loved the song, which sealed it for me that this defiantly had to be the song. Recording it, I wanted to strip it back and just have my vocal not overly produced with loads of backing vocals. I wanted it simple with nice guitar and strings. The producer Stewart listened to what I wanted and was on the same wavelength and I’m delighted with the finished product.”
Kiera admits it was emotionally challenging to record the song because Ben had just died when they went into the studio to make it. It was, of course, all the more poignantly painful in light of her own father’s battle with an incurable cancer.

“By the time I got into the studio to put down my vocal, Ben had just passed away. So, what would have been a very difficult thing to do became a hundred times harder,” she reveals. But my aim was to do Ben’s memory justice and to give his parents and family something they could listen to and think of Ben – and I hope it can be of some comfort to them.”
Kiera played the song earlier this week for Ben’s mother who was moved to tears when she heard it. Val sent a simple but touching text message to all those who chipped in: “It’s absolutely beautiful. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

For more information or imagery please contact Stephen Browne moc.liamg@worbnehpets

About the charities

The Gavin Glynn Foundation believes that all children with cancer deserve the best care.
We know first hand what it is like to have to travel to other countries with your child to receive treatment.
We want to take this financial burden and stress away from the families so they can focus all their time on their child and family.
Our mission is to be able to assist families with:
• Transportation (eg. Flights, Car Hire).
• Transportation to and drop the designated Airports.
• Accommodation within, or close to, the designated medical center.
• Food and living expenses for the duration of the child’s treatment while abroad.
• Travel pack to include toys for the child and siblings travelling.
Aoibheann’s Pink Tie
“National Children’s Cancer Charity” was set up in 2010 by Mick Rochford and Jimmy Norman after the tragic loss of Jimmy’s daughter Aoibheann to cancer aged just 8 years. During Aoibheann’s year long battle with this dreadful disease, the family found little or no financial or practical support for children and their families.
Jimmy and his family had a large support network of friends and family but found that many on the ward had virtually no support at all.
When Aoibheann passed away the men wore pink ties at the funeral which was Aoibheann’s favourite colour. The charity was formed in her memory to remedy the lack of support for other children and their families going through treatment.

SUB MOTION are a Dublin based band with a full-bodied, modern rock sound with the vivacious Rebecca Geary at the helm on lead vocals. Following the release of their EP “Happy Little Bruises” and well-received single “Haunt Me”, the band took some time to revamp their sound and image, introducing the energetic, punk rockers we hear now in their highly anticipated new single “HEADCHECKED”.

Recorded live in Sun Studios with sublime producer James Darkin (Black Eyed Peas, Hozier, Rihanna, Funeral Suits), “HEADCHECKED” embodies the high-octane live performances and attitude that Sub Motion brings to all their gigs. What you see is what you get with these guys. With a number of follow-up releases ready to go, 2016/2017 will see Sub Motion take on the music scene by storm.

The last two years have seen the band playing the Button Factory, the RDS, headlining and selling out Whelan’s, appearing at the Vibe for Philo, playing in the UK, getting air play and generally fine tuning their on-stage and recorded sound. Today with an unparalleled, infectious, live energy throughout every show, SUB MOTION are quickly rising through the ranks.

“One of the few new bands I would walk across the street to see.”
– RTE 2FM – Dave Fanning

“With the likes of Queens of the Stone Age and Foo Fighters having played sold out gigs in recent times, Ireland is ready for distorted guitars, heavy drums and heavy rock. One of these bands making a name for themselves over the past few years are Sub Motion”
– Dublin Concerts

RiZA is the latest project by the dynamic Congolese guitarist/singer Niwel Tsumbu, described as “a truly exceptional guitarist” by allaboutjazz. RiZA features Niwel Tsumbu on guitars and vocals, his long-time collaborator Eamonn Cagney (of Treelan) on percussion, Emma Garnett (Feather) and Sallay Garnett (Loah) on vocals, and Paddy Groenland (Ensemble Ériu, Manden Express) on guitar. Today RiZA unveil the dynamic new single & video ‘Thank You’ as a taster for their debut album due for release in early 2017.

Niwel explains the theme of ‘Thank You’ – “The song is really a way to express gratitude to my wife as a friend and for all the support she has given me over the years. I often say without the influence of women we would still be living in caves! Sometimes we take it for granted what we have until it is gone so, I thought I should do it now. But this is not just about my wife; gratitude is a quality that has a direct connection to happiness. We should never forget it as a species – being grateful is a great way to increase our well being and life satisfaction.”

Featuring two ballet dancers dancing and weaving ribbons through a fence, the video was recorded on location in Berlin and was directed by Steve Glashier (Fatboy Slim, Chrissie Hynde, Juliette Lewis). ‘Thank You’ was recorded and mixed at the prestigious Peter Gabriel Realworld Studios in Wales, alongside the rest of the tracks which will form their debut album due out in the new year.

RiZA is a celebration of life and exploration through sound with acoustic instruments, weaving the rich tapestry of African rhythms with contemporary harmony and drawing inspiration from our life experiences. 2015 saw the launch of RiZA with appearances at festivals around Ireland including Africa Day and the recording of the album at Real World Studios. The album release, due to happen last year, was put on hold to allow Niwel to return to Congo to care for his ill Mother. Now, Niwel is focusing on RiZA by launching the new video “Thank you” and preparing for the launch of their debut album.

LIVE DATES:
Niwel is performing at the Creative Connections Festival in Barcelona from October 24th – November 4th, a unique event to forge connections between Irish & Catalan cultures through workshops and performances. On November 18th Eamonn and Niwel will perform a free show at UCC, on 26th November RiZA will perform at Sugar Club, Dublin as part of the Improvised Music Company’s 25th Birthday celebrations and on November 28th see Niwel perform a solo show at JJ Smyth’s as part of Dublin Guitar Night.

About Niwel Tsumbu
Since arriving in Ireland in 2004 from the Congo, Niwel Tsumbu has developed an enviable reputation as a masterfully elegant and fluent guitarist, vocalist, musician, collaborator and composer. He has performed with the finest Irish and international musicians (Sinead O’ Connor, Glen Hansard, Liam O’ Maonlai, Baaba Maal, Donal Lunny, Donal Dineen) while continuing to craft his own distinctive sound derived from rhumba, soukous, classical, jazz, world, rock, and much more. Renowned for his versatility and virtuosity, Tsumbu has appeared at many festivals around Ireland and overseas including China at Expo alongside Xiaohui Ma. His performance of ‘Electric Counterpoint’ at The Reich Festival in front of composer Steve Reich at Kilkenny Arts Festival was a triumph. He continues to collaborate with leading artists and theatre companies including Abbey Theatre, Cork Opera House and Roger Doyle Heresy Opera.

LIVE FINAL AT THE ROSE HOTEL, TRALEE | SATURDAY 26TH NOVEMBER | 8:30PM

SPECIAL GUEST JOHN SPILLANE TO PERFORM ON THE NIGHT

The live final of the sixth annual IMRO Christie Hennessy Song Competition takes place on Saturday, 26th November at The Rose Hotel, Tralee, with a special guest performance from the much loved singer songwriter John Spillane. Ten finalists have been selected from over 200 entries from across Ireland and beyond to perform their original song in front of a live audience and panel of expert judges. The winning songwriter will be presented with a cheque for €1,000, courtesy of Tralee Credit Union with a runner up prize of €300.

Christie Hennessy: A Celebration will open on Friday 25th November with The Troubadour Club, a showcase featuring some of the finest of Ireland’s contemporary songwriters.

The IMRO Christie Hennessy Song Competition takes place as a tribute to the life and music of one of Tralee’s most famous sons. Now in its sixth year, the competition has grown in stature over the years to become one of Ireland’s leading song competitions and continues to attract a high calibre of songwriters from Ireland and overseas, covering a broad range of musical genres. Previous winners have included Paul McDonnell, Dave Molloy, Alan Kavanagh, Enda Reilly/Christine Deady and Míde Houlihan.

The ten finalists in the 2016 IMRO Christie Hennessy Song Competition are:

Karen Kelly & Simon McCafferty | Song: Sail My Direction

Shane Ó Fearghail | Song: Push

Elaine Goddard & Dave Christopher | Song: Change

Leo Capper & Fiona Kelly | Song: Memories Just Remain

Sian Hanley & Louise Bolger | Song: Heal

Robert Grace, James Foley & Glenn Herlihy | Song: Talk To Me

Neil Moran | Song: In Time

Carrie Haskins | Song: Hell On Wheels

Katie O’Connor | Song: Just Too Young

Kevin Murray | Song: Don’t Need Me

Entry to the live final is free of charge. For further details about the event, contact IMRO at *protected email* or 01 661 4844.

The IMRO Christie Hennessy Song Competition is supported by Tralee Chamber Alliance, The Troubadour Club, Tralee Credit Union, The Rose Hotel and Radio Kerry.

Youth Work Ireland’s Irish Youth Music Awards (IYMAs) programme is marking its ten-year anniversary, this all island youth music educational programme will host over fifteen regional events across the entire island over the forthcoming months.

To mark the launch, a full length album of original tracks recorded by last year’s recipients from team Galway were released last Friday 21st October. The album is available digitally and on CD with iTunes pre-orders now live here. This album was recorded in Temple Lane Studios in Dublin where artists such as U2, Bressie and Kanye West have recorded and was mastered by Richard Dowling in Wav mastering who has worked with David Bowie, The Foo Fighters and Choice Music Winner Soak.

“We are very excited to be entering our tenth year supporting the creativity of young people across Ireland and acting as a stepping stone in their journey as they progress to further education and employment opportunities. As part of this year’s programme we are very happy to announce that we are partnering with LinkedIn Learning to offer young people and youth leaders participating in the programme use of their online learning platform to further help them learn new skills and progress their educational opportunities. To mark the ten-year anniversary, we would love to see the album charting this year and we are encouraging people to get a copy the week of release to support this happening. We have lots more planned as part of the programme which we will be announcing over the forthcoming months.” said Barry Lennon, Irish Youth Music Awards Director.

The IYMAs programme will finish with a youth music festival in the Aviva Stadium on Saturday 22nd April 2017. Last year saw hundreds of young people attend the event, which featured over thirty-six up and coming acts play across two stages, a large educational hub for anyone attending to join with workshops by BIMM lecturers covering topics such as song writing, drums and lots more. This event is open to all to attend and tickets are now available here from Eventbrite priced €20 including booking fee.

As part of last week’s launch, Galway representing act JANAJ performed at the Youth Work Ireland National Conference in Dublin Castle on Saturday 22nd October followed by an exclusive all ages album launch gig in the legendary Roisin Dubh venue on Sunday 23rd October, with all the performers from the IYMAs album playing to celebrate the release of the IYMAs album.

Last year’s recipients JANAJ, who are one of eight acts featured on the IYMAs album said “Taking part in the IYMAs has opened so many doors for us as musicians and individuals. We got a glimpse into the depth of work that goes into promoting, creating, and selling an act and their music. The IYMAs has helped the young people from our team in Galway grow our passion for music, as well as gaining skills and experience in areas that we may not experience in a traditional school setting.”

The overall recipient region will be announced at the National Day in the Aviva Stadium on Saturday 22nd April 2017. Performers on the day will be chosen to represent their region at local live selection events and will be supported by a team comprising of all other contestants from their region taking on individual music industry roles. The winning region will receive recording time in a studio with backline provided by Music Maker Dublin. They will also produce an album of their own released on physical CD with a professional design. The album will be digitally distributed worldwide through iTunes, Spotify and many more outlets.

‘BROKEN’ is the beautiful follow up to spring 2016’s ‘My World Again’, the debut solo single

Following a hectic summer with his alt folk band, Tupelo, James Cramer is now ready to bring us his new single, BROKEN. The new single, released on Friday 21st October is the follow up to James’ debut solo record, ‘My World Again’ released last spring and entered Top 5 in the itunes singles chart.
Filmed in Cauldron Studios Dublin, the video was directed by David Montuy

BROKEN, is again a piano and percussive led track. Quietly approaching in its style, but quickly addictive.
A limited number of live performances are being planned to follow the release of BROKEN, a taster of James’s beautiful solo live sound. The lyrics in this track while appearing quite literal are not related to any particular situation of conflict, but rather are metaphorical. The video was shot to the Cauldron Studios in Dublin, a location that is quickly turning into a home from home for James, and rightly so it’s a perfect spot in the north inner city.

BROKEN was also recorded and engineered by Michael Manning at The Cauldron Studios, mastered by Ciaran Byrne at Cauldron Studios,Produced by James.

Both BROKEN, and the debut single My World Again are taken from James’ debut solo EP, which is expected to land spring 2017.

Similarly to Spring 2016’s ‘My World Again’, BROKEN also conveys an almost reserved side of James, who has primarily written in a different style and genre for his band work.
Investigating this side of his song writing craft has been in James’s plan for some time. In many ways it’s a dream come through that his solo material is now in the public domain.

In addition to this solo project James already has a successful career with acclaimed alt-folk band Tupelo. The band has a very successful recording and live career, especially in Europe and the USA where the band spent most of this summer for festival season.

James debut single from spring of this year, ‘My World Again’ is confirmed to feature in Canadian TV show called Hello Goodbye on the CBC network. The tx time frame in Canada is the end of October (this year!)

Known as Ireland’s leading collegiate chamber choir, the UCD Chamber Scholars have created a video for their rendition of Brendan Graham‘s ‘Orphan Girl’.

Orphan Girl was written by Brendan Graham for a the Annual Great Famine Commemoration ceremony held in 2012 at Sydney’s Hyde Park Barracks to commemorate the relocation of over four thousand female orphans who, between 1848 and 1850, were brought from Ireland during the Great Famine of the 1840s.

The work was first performed by the Australian Girls’ Choir and Sarah Calderwood at the 2012 ceremony. It is reliably estimated that today, up to two million Australians are descended from the original 4,112 Irish Orphan Girls, who found a new life in Australia in the years of Ireland’s Great Calamity.

The rendition of the work is available on a compilation album they feature on titled ‘Invisible Stars’, an enchanting collection of traditional and contemporary choral music from Ireland and Scotland and features arrangements and compositions by some of Ireland’s most celebrated composers. This arrangement for upper voices and guitar is by Desmond Earley. The album can be purchased here.